Villanova transfer says Dayton has a team that will give its all

• Senior guard Jordan Derkack played for a disappointing Rutgers team that finished 15-17 despite having two lottery picks on its roster.

• Sophomore guard Adam Njie Jr. played his freshman season at Iona, which finished 17-17.

• Guard Bryce Heard, now a sophomore at Dayton, committed to a North Carolina State program that had just reached the Final Four but experienced a 12-19 season that got coach Kevin Keatts fired.

• Forward Malcolm Thomas redshirted last season as a freshman at Villanova, which missed the NCAA tournament for the third straight season.

Only two newcomers played for teams that considered last season a success. De’Shayne Montgomery, now a junior guard, played in the NCAA tournament with Georgia, earning seven minutes in a first-round loss to Gonzaga, and the latest transfer, sixth-year forward Keonte Jones, helped lead Cal State Northridge to its first 20-win season in 17 years.

What does that mean for Dayton, which concludes its summer practice period this week? It has a roster full of players hungry to win.

“There are a lot of points to prove for a lot of guys,” Thomas said. “We all have that in common.”

Dayton earned two NCAA tournament berths in coach Anthony Grant’s first eight seasons if you give the program credit for a berth it would have received in 2020 if the tournament had not been canceled because of the pandemic. The Flyers have been a consistent Atlantic 10 Conference contender in Grant’s tenure but have only one championship — regular season or tournament — in the last eight seasons.

The Flyer Faithful know that history well. The newcomers just know they want to win now.

“This is going to be a team that gives its all on the court,” Thomas said. “This is going to be a team that does everything in its power to be successful.”

A 6-foot-8 forward from Mitchelville, Md., just north of Washington, D.C., Thomas played for a storied program at DeMatha Catholic High School. Now he’s one of eight newcomers at Dayton. Thomas and freshmen Damon Friery and Jaron McKie are the only scholarship players on the roster who have never played in a college game.

“For me personally, I just want to get out and show people what they missed out on last year,” Thomas said.

Seven of the newcomers — everyone but Jones, who announced his commitment Friday — sat down with the Dayton Daily News last week to talk about summer practices and the season ahead.

“It’s a learning curve, for sure, when there’s so many new guys,” Thomas said, “but I feel like it’s a benefit that we’re a little bit older. We have guys that know how to play in certain roles coming from different schools.”

It’s a safe bet Thomas is the best dunker on the team. He won a preseason dunk contest at Villanova last year. Asked what he will bring to the team, Thomas said, “My ability to guard, my ability to play and make plays for teammates and just being able to do whatever I need to do for my team.”

While the competition for playing time has already begun, practices are about more than that for Thomas.

“At the moment, the competition is trying to see who’s team this is,” he said, “and really getting to the bottom of how far will guys go. How much can you push each other? Everybody’s responding — from the freshmen to the seniors. We have a mob of guys who want to be on the court and don’t want to get taken out."

After not playing last season, Thomas will have a good chance to play a big role for Dayton this season. He’s the tallest of the eight newcomers and the third-tallest player on the team behind 7-foot-1 sophomore center Amaël L’Etang, a returning starter, and senior forward Jacob Conner.

Thomas’ teammates gave their scouting reports on him last week.

“He’s a great athlete,” Heard said. “He’s done some stuff I’ve never seen this summer. It’s going to be fun to play with him this year. Fans should be expecting a lot of big plays out of him.”

Derkack, who missed most of the summer practices because of a foot injury, said he started to click with Thomas on the court just before his injury.

“He’s big, and he’s strong,” Derkack said. “He’s working in the weight room. I think that’s an area where he can improve. He can be a dominant force. He’s fast. He thinks the game out. I can’t wait to play with him.”

Montgomery called Thomas one of the most athletic teammates he’s had.

“If you throw a lob anywhere near the rim, he’s going to grab it,” Montgomery said.